First time

[Reef]

I've played over 100K hands online but have never went to a B&M ring game. Next week sometime is my first.

any advice?

[Luv2DriveTT]

Play low limit games only. Buy in for 25x the big bet. watch the table before sitting down so you understand the culture of a live game. Don't jump up and down screaming "SCORE!!!!" if you win a hand (reguardless of how big it is). Stay reletively quiet and observant.

Lastly - Tell everyone at the table you have never played before, you will be surprised at how nice they will be to you as you mop up their chips off the table.

TT [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]

[TomCollins]

Where are you playing? Sometimes there are specific tips. You will be fine.

Always VERBALIZE your raises and calls.

[RiverMel]

No. Verbalize your raises. Don't verbalize your calls unless you want to get punched in the neck.

[TomCollins]

I've seen people who thought I was raising when I threw in a larger chip. It makes things easier.

Remember, a single chip is a call.

[maryfield48]

[ QUOTE ]
I've played over 100K hands online but have never went to a B&M ring game. Next week sometime is my first.

any advice?

[/ QUOTE ]

I posted recently about my first B&M experience at Harrah's in New Orleans. I managed all of these screw ups:

1. First time I was in the BB, I mucked to no raise (where's the damn pop-up telling me it's free to check?)

2. I got busted for a (accidental) string-raise. Dealer wouldn't let me raise. Said I put the chips in in two motions. I didn't think so, and the player beside me thought the dealer was being a bit of a prick but...after that I verbalized my raises.

3. One hand with a four-flush on the board I had the K of the suit and was a leeetle slow turning over my other card, dealer barks out "You have to show both cards sir".

But I had a bunch of fun, the guys I was playing with were pretty cool (and terrible, terrible players), and I won (which makes up for a lot).

[Al_Capone_Junior]

Yes, I have advice. But I feel slightly RANTY tonight, so bear with me....

Please do not be one of those internet players who can play poker well in a strategic sense, but has no idea how to conduct themselves in a live cardroom. These internet wanna-bees are everywhere these days, and they are just annoying as hell for us B&M regulars. It's like they get used to the internet doing all the work for them, and like a child who cannot entertain themselves without watching TV, they are inept and unable to function without the beeps and buzzes they are used to getting online.

Pay attention! Gawk at the waitress BETWEEN hands, not while everyone is waiting for you to act.

If you are going to wear glasses, make sure your eyesight is sufficient that you can actually SEE the cards, suits, etc.

Don't blow smoke in other people's faces if it's a smoking room. Be polite with your smokes. If it's a non-smoking room, buy some listerine strips (or something) to keep your neighbors from gagging on your breath when you come back from smoking!

Play fast and learn the mechanics of live cardroom play before you sit down and irritate the dealer and other players in the game. If you have to sign up for "lessons" then do it. Lee Jones book does have some good advice on cardroom ettiquette. Read it if you aren't sure.

don't friggin' count out your chips one at a friggin' time out of your rack (which of course most internet wanna-be cardroom players insist on keeping on the table). Take the chips out of your rack and cut them like you know what you are doing. Single chip counters bug me, particularly if they are obviously internet players. Us B&M regulars are already aware that three comes after four, four comes after five, etc etc and don't need a fresh physical demonstration EVERY SINGLE TIME IT IS YOUR TURN TO BET/RAISE/CALL. Six chips are stacked 3 and 3, eight chips are stacked 4 and 4, ten chips are stacked 5 and 5, etc. Stacks of seven or nine or eleven or seventeen are completely useless, and the dealer will break them down anyway, thus wasting time counting chips you could have already properly stacked in the first place.

Stacks of chips on the table are in stacks of TWENTY. It's much easier to verify stacks for change/color up if you don't stack them by 23 or 39 or 14. If you are all-in in a no limit game, having your chips already stacked in a convenient manner will speed up the game immensely. Remember, the dealer MUST count your chips when you go all-in, so make it EASY for them.

Use basic courtesy and common sense when dealing and speaking to others involved in the game, including the dealer. I understand that the internet is a free-for-all contest to see who can be the most obnoxious, and I was sometimes guilty of this myself when I used to (GAG) play online. However, in a live cardroom this crap doesn't fly. While there are 50,000,000,000,001 idiot moron fish waiting to take the place of anyone who you piss off on the internet, in a live game, if you piss off the fish you may wind up in a game full of rocks with a profitability margin of 0.000000000000000001%.

Let the DEALER run the game. Listen to them and follow their commands/prompts. While some dealers these days are inept and incompetent, most can run the game efficiently enough. They are ALL much better if you don't make their job difficult.

Tip the dealers when you win a pot. An extremely large tip is not required, but don't be a friggin' stiff either. I generally tip 2% of the pot, but usually try to tip a buck even if the pot is less than $50. If it's REALLY small I don't tip a buck, but might tip a half dollar or couple or three quarters anyway. Stealing the blinds does not require a tip. Tip your waitress for your drinks, and give the chip runner a buck when they bring you your chips! Live cardrooms require tipping! If the floorperson or brush does something particularly nice, it never hurts to tip them as well (most cardrooms allow tipping floorpeople, tho a few don't, obviously they will tell you if it's not allowed).

Protect your hand! This is more important than what beats what! Cup your hands around your cards and lift up the corners, peeking in the little "window" to see what you have. Don't remove your cards from the felt! They should never leave the table! Don't let go of them until A) they have killed all the losing hands and are pushing the chips your direction, or B) you are certain your hand is a loser. Once your cards touch the muck pile, THEY ARE COMPLETELY AND FOREVER DEAD AND YOU HAVE NO FURTHER RIGHT TO THE POT REGARDLESS OF WHAT YOU HAVE.

FLOORMAN'S DECISIONS ARE FINAL. Don't argue with the floorman!

If you want to raise, say "RAISE" loudly and clearly. Then you may count the chips out at your leisure. If you try to raise (without saying it out loud) and make multiple motions towards your chips, you have made a "string bet" and it won't be allowed to stand. Multiple motions for bets or raises are just not kosher in a live cardroom. Just say it out loud "RAISE" and you'll be fine. If you are playing no limit, you might say "raise to fifty" or "make it $110." Then you can count them out as you wish without fear of being guilty of a string raise (which a dealer won't allow to stand, and correctly so).

Oversized chip rule: If you are going to call with an oversized chip, just tossing it in the pot indicates a CALL. Say the bb is $2 and you wish to make it $5. Well, if you just toss in a red chip and don't say anything, YOU HAVE CALLED. If you say "RAISE" and toss in a red chip, now the bet is legitimately $5. Another way to deal with this is to just use five $1 chips instead of a $5 chip.

When you fold, push your cards to where the dealer doesn't have to do the friggin limbo stretch across the table to retrieve them. Same thing for when you place a bet.

Place your bet in front of you, and far enough where the dealer can easily collect it, and in the proper stack configuration for the bet you are making (see above paragraph on stacking bets). Don't splash the friggin' pot! It's cool when teddy-kgb does it, but it is a real annoyance when some moron does it in a live game and the dealer has to count down the pot to verify the bets.

In general, do everything you can to get that game going fast and to make the fish feel comfortable! Live play is slower than internet play, like usually almost 50% slower. You need to do everything in the world that you can to act quickly and efficiently.

Rant completed! [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

al

[TripleH68]

Damn Al! I think that about covers it. And redefines the term rant. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

I am coming out to Vegas in December. Was considering the Orleans to stay and play, then tripping out to the strip to play once or twice. I have read a previous post of yours about the vegas stops, but just wanted more on Orleans. Is it worth staying there? I play limit HE and would likely hit the $6-12 game. The description of a large room with plenty low limit action sounds enticing. Thanks, Triple.

[Reef]

Thanks al

[Luv2DriveTT]

Amazing rant Al.... but you are 100% correct, therefore it is hardly a rant. Let me add a few annoyances to your list:

1) When you protect your hand (as advised in Al's post) make sure your fellow players can see that you have a hand. Its very agrivating to find out you have 4 opponents, not three because the newbie is hiding his hand

2) Keep your chip stack behind your cards. This is not only because of #1 above, but also to avoid cheeting. You cannot hide your cards, so don't try it!

3) Some people have a hard time keeping their chip stacks in front of them, while looking at their hole cards. So do the smart thing, move the chips off to the left so your cards can come flush to the table rail.

4) Players who have been in the game for a while laugh at people who sit down with sunglasses and a baseball hat, you might as well write FISH across your face. You cannot hide bad play behind the glasses, so be a man and take them off. (I should mention that I sometimes wear sunglasses at the table, partially because it helps my eyes when I get tired. But at least I don't look obvious!)

5) If you have a question - ask. Don't be afraid to admit you are new to B&M. It might actually be to your advantage!

6) If you don't want anyone to see your cards at showdown if you loose, put them in the muck immediatly. They have the right (although its annoying and rude) to ask to see your cards.

7) If you are going all in, WAIT until the dealer asks to see your cards. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen some fool show his hand when he went all in while there are still players left to act!

I'm done...

TT [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]